Three-year-old Jillie, who was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, wished to have a mini-farm with a rabbit hutch and a chicken coop. There she would be able to collect eggs and raise chickens, just like if she grew up on a farm. Jillie's love for animals inspired her to chose a wish that would let her care for some animals of her own.
This wish caught my eye because I had a chicken coop of my own at my great-grandmother's house when I was growing up. Every morning, we would go down to the coop and collect eggs to make breakfast together. In the afternoon, when I got home from school, I'd go outside and give the chickens food or scraps of bread, making sure that they were happy, well-fed and comfortable. Watching them grow from chicks into full-sized hens and roosters was a rewarding experience. My brothers and I felt accomplished, because we had worked hard to make sure that the chickens had stayed healthy. We had raised something on our own and were able to reap the benefits – delicious breakfast every morning and the call of a rooster to wake us up at sunrise (something we weren't always so thankful for).
I'd imagine that Jillie feels the same. After countless trips to the hospital and seemingly endless treatments, it has to feel amazing to be able to take care of something herself, after having everyone take care of her for awhile. Being able to be responsible for animals of her own must make Jillie feel like a real grown up, something she's proven even more by enduring treatments and hospital stays.